Memories of Mysteries
by Ein.78
Summary: A young boy wakes up in the middle of a forest to find that he has little to no memory of his past. He sets off to a journey to unravel his memories, which might lead him to unravel the mysteries of his world as well.
1. Chapter 1: My Memories

_This is my first fanfic that I've posted. I'm still an amateur but I hope you'll like my writings._

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Swallowed by darkness, the young boy felt pain surge throughout his body with every movement that he made. He felt cold, alone, and scared, the darkness seemed unending as he searched for light outside of this cold and dark prison. He shouted, cried, yet nothing... no one came to his aid. His hope was depleting for every second that has passed until he was ready to give up. He stood up and screamed as loudly as he could to release all his sadness and anger that accumulated in his chest before passing out.

Light flashed through the eyelids of the young boy, making his vision blur as he opened them. His eyes adjusted to the rays of light that passed through the swaying leaves. He was lying down on the grass before he stood up and looked at where he was.

"Where... am... I...?" the boy muttered to himself. He looked above and stared at the distance with expressionless eyes, trying to recollect anything that happened. His eyes widened when he realized something, "Who... am I...?" The boy was shocked by the mere question he asked himself. He didn't recall anything from his past.

Questions flooded his mind. He started getting confused, and panicked a bit. He crouched and held his head with both hands as he felt like his mind was about to explode. He started breathing heavily and getting dizzy when suddenly, light flashed into his eyes and he was now brought to somewhere unfamiliar.

Everything was a blur so he couldn't make out anything from what he saw but he couldn't seem to move his head that was facing what seemed to be a silhouette of someone.

"Hello, young lad. This is the first time I've seen your face. What's your name?" the person's voice was soft and a smile appeared on his face (though, a bit hard to see).

"Mmm! We just moves from the Town of Tora. My name is Chrono," the childish voice came from the young boy, so he believed that this was a memory of his past.

"Oh? The Town of Tora? That's actually pretty far, Chrono," his voice sounded shocked yet amazed at the same time. The person's face became nearer in view, making his face a bit clearer. His eyes were close but he was smiling. He then patted the young Chrono on the head, "Well, welcome to..." He couldn't hear the last parts clearly but then everything started to fade into nothingness until everything became pitch black.

Another flash occured, and Chrono was sent somewhere different. He seemed to be in a place filled with kids of his age (around 5 or 6), sitting on the grass.

A blurry vision of a man with a briefcase came into view. He was panting and holding on to the nearest mailbox so that he won't collapse from fatigue, "Good... morning... everyone," he breathed heavily with each word said. After the greeting, the man composed himself as he stood erect and waved hi to everyone. The children, including the past Chrono, then went cheering.

"OK, settle down, now, before I begin, I'd like to ask one of you a question. Hmm, let's see," he eyed the different students, with some raising their hand in hopes that they'd be picked, "Ah! Chrono," he pointed at the young Chrono who was at the back of the crowd, "what are we going to learn about today? Stand up, don't be shy," he gestured the young Chrono to stand but he shook his head. "Aw, c'mon. Standing ain't gonna hurt anyone," the person smiled at him, giving him courage to stand up, "Good, now, I'll ask again, what are we going to learn about today?"

Chrono seemed nervous as his legs were shaking but he was able to to shout. "We are going to learn about P-Pokemons!" The children screamed of excitement that died after a few seconds.

"Very good, Chrono," Chrono sat down as the professor and opened the briefcase, revealing 3 Pokeballs in which he took the one on his right, "Pokemons," he threw the ball to reveal an Oshawatt, "are mysterious creatures. They are very different from us since, well, reasons," some of the children laughed, "There are many other different Pokemons, for example, one is like this," he patted the Oshawatt, "cute and adorable but there are also others," he took the pokeball from his left and threw it to reveal a Mightyena, "that are fierce and strong!"

The Mightyena howled that made some children wowed while the others screamed. "Ahem, moving on," the professor retrieved the Mightyena back to its Pokeball, "there are still many mysteries surrounding these wonderful creatures, each having different abilities and characterstics of their own, we are still researching about them, how they are and..." everything slowed down then froze, as if time stopped, then everything shattered like a broken glass.

Each fragment started to fade until everything turned pitch black again. A flash, and Chrono was back to the present. He was still crouching and his hands on his head but not feeling like his head was about to burst anymore.

"Ch... Chrono...? That's my name...? And... and Pokemons...?" He was left staring at the ground for a minute before deciding to stand up. "I... I guess these memories are a start..."

He inhaled then exhaled deeply before looking around the area in which he is in. He noticed a lone bag sitting beside a tree. "Huh... what is this bag doing here...? I don't think I saw this the first time I looked around," he approached the bag and slid the zipper to open it.

He could recall most of the things inside the bag. They were: 6 Pokeballs, devices used to capture Pokemons; a Potion, used to heal a Pokemon's wound; a Pokedex, for scanning Pokemons; Fresh Clothes, fits Chrono's size; a Box of Crackers, emergency purposes?

But there was this one thing that he didn't know, a case with 4 different-shaped holes. Chrono looked at the case for a few seconds to try and remember what it was but gave up and put it back in the bag.

"These are all good things... why would someone just leave it here...?" Chrono picked up the bag and equipped it, "Well, if I meet the owner of this bag, I'll return but in the meantime, this'll be useful, I guess. A town might be nearby, and maybe I can ask them where the Town of Tora is... and maybe I can regain some more memories..." he thought deeply of the circumstances at hand and nodded with a grunt, "Okay, time to get my memories back," he smiled as he walked through a straight line in hopes of reaching a town or finding the owner of this bag to accompany with, whichever comes first.

After a few minutes of walking straight forward, he could finally see sunlight from outside of this forest, "Well, the town it is," he dashed forward, a smile across his face and hopeful eyes but then disappeared as he stopped to see that the edge of the forest was above the clouds, literally. "Wh-What...?" he was dumbfounded, "where in the world am I...?"

He knelt down on one knee and scooped the clouds to see if it's real, "Is this really... clouds...?" he opened his bag to produce the box of crackers. He took one cracker and threw it upwards towards the clouds and was shocked at how fast the cracker went down, as if something stronger than gravity pulled it, "this is... very unsafe... I should find another way out of here..." he stood up and stared at the forest for a few seconds before shaking his head, "If I got in here, there should be a way out," he entered the forest once more with no sense of directions, in hopes he might find a way out within the forest.

Chrono was getting a bit tired. He has been walking around the forest for what seemed like hours. After a few more minutes, he saw an area wherein broad daylight was able to touch the ground. He walked towards it and saw a placid lake, unclouded by any leaves of the trees that made it shimmer in the sunlight. He paused for a moment, admiring the lake but he couldn't shake the feeling that he has seen this somewhere before.

He moved towards the lake and scooped some of the water, rippling it. He drank the water as he felt a cool and soothing breeze touch his back, making him feel a bit drowzy. He stood up and saw his reflection in the lake.

He was wearing dark-blue pants and a long-sleeved red hoodie jacket. He has black eyes and a black, messy hair. He looked down to see his feet, he was wearing black rubber shoes with a red heel and red sides. "So, this is Chrono... this is me..." he stared towards space and did a trust fall, landing on the green grass, "I wonder... why..." his eyes closed involuntarily as he dozed off, "why..."


	2. Chapter 2: Fateful Encounter

_So, here it is, Chapter 2. Hope you'll like it._

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Chrono dozed off and dreamt. He was in a room where he felt like home. There was a blue bed covered with a white sheet on the upper right corner. Right beside it is a study table with a few books on top. In the upper-middle part is a window with a nice view and right to it is a wardrobe. Chrono was in the lower-left corner, near to the door when it suddenly slammed opened, making him jump.

He saw a silhouette of a young boy running towards the bed. The silhouette was heard sobbing and sniffing as he covered himself with the sheet. He walked towards him when he heard his name being called from behind. It was a very calm and gentle voice. He heard the footsteps grow nearer when it passed through Chrono. The other silhouette sat down on the bed as he/she took the sheet gently to uncover the crying past Chrono.

"It wasn't your fault," when the other silhouette said these words, it hit Chrono. He started to remember some bits and pieces and the silhouette is lightening up, he can see it a bit more clearly. The silhouette was her mother.

"I'm s-sorry... mom..." the past Chrono sobbed and sniffed as he wiped his eyes with his hands. "I... never intended..." he went silent with tears rolling down his cheeks while Chrono was eager to know what happened.

Chrono's mom pat him on the head, "Chrono..." she hugged him as she also started to cry. Chrono was left dumbfounded on what he just saw. 'What happened?' is what he thought then suddenly, everything started to fade and Chrono was left in the darkness with his thoughts.

He didn't know what was happening. Why in the world was he crying? He was very deep in his mind when something poked him on his left arm. He glanced but saw nothing so he just shook his head and resumed his thoughts. He was poked again in which he reacted with a martial arts stance facing the direction he was poked at.

"I look stupid doing this," Chrono put his arms down, "after all, this is just my mi-," he paused for a bit before he facepalmed, "stupid, this is just my mind... so... if this is my mind," he raised his head and looked around, "then something must be touching me in the real world...! I need to wake up soo- hngh!" he was stopped when he felt something heavy land on his chest.

Chrono was greeted with sunshine from above and something brown...? on his chest.

"Hello." the creature waved its right paw before jumping off Chrono's chest. "Nice to meet you. My name is Hope. And question, doesn't it hurt to sleep with that bag on your back?" it poked Chrono's bag which was being flattened.

"Hmm? Well, not really," Chrono tried to get upright when his back ached sudddenly, causing him to fall, "I stand... corrected!" He finally got up with a grunt and gave the creature a thumbs up, earning him a laugh.

"Reintroducing myself, I'm Hope. Nice to meet you." Hope extended his paw with a smile.

"My name's Chrono, and likewise," Chrono shook Hope's paw. "Though I'd have liked it more if you, I dunno, didn't drop on my chest?" Chrono replied with a sarcastic voice in which the creature just laughed it off.

"By the way, this is the first time I've seen you before. What Pokemon are you and where are you from?" Hope asked at the now confused human.

"I'm not a Pokemon! I think," Chrono muttered the last two words, "and I don't remember where I'm from actually." he faked a smile as he looked at the ground.

"Oh, you're a human then." Hope smiled at Chrono, "I'm an Eevee in case you don't know." the creature started to walk around, "I've never seen a human before. Big Brother keeps saying that they're bad people but looking at you, I don't think they're bad."

"Thanks for the compliment? Well, I better-" before he was able to stand up, he saw something green come from the other side of the lake in which he was able to avoid. Another one came and hit him on the shoulder while the other wrapped itself on Chrono's waist and lifted him up in the air.

"Filthy human, how dare you trespass here," a voice is heard from the other side of the lake before Chrono was pushed back and slammed towards a nearby tree causing him to grunt. A silhoutte jumped from the other side to where Chrono was as a gust of wind appeared as it landed.

"B-Brother Leaf!" Hope was surprised by the sudden appearance of the tan-colored creature.

"Hope..." Leaf glared at his brother, "What do you think you're doing talking to a human!" he yelled in a somewhat childish manner.

"I never knew he was a human in the first place! You never gave me anything that describes a human other than them being bad!" Hope replied in a childish manner as well.

"But can't you see that he looks different from us?"

"Don't we all look different from each other?"

"Well, yeah but he's clearly very different!"

"Not in my point of view!"

The sibling quarrel carried on while Chrono is just hanging uncomfortably. He watched them with a blank face before he suddenly smiled and laughed slightly which made the two look at him confused. "I'm sorry, it's just that you two look funny fighting like that. By the way, can you put me down? Your Vine Whip is kinda killing me." Chrono nervously asked. The Leafeon had an appearance of shock before his brows crossed and growled.

"Not a chance, human! You think I'm just gonna let you go that easily?" The Leafeon's tone became serious.

"Well, couldn't hurt to try," Chrono just smiled at the creature.

"Brother Leaf, he had amnesia. He doesn't remember anything from the past based on my observations." the once childish Eevee suddenly became serious. Leaf raised an eyebrow at his own brother and slowly put Chrono down.

"If that's true, then he shouldn't have know about 'Vine Whip,'" Leaf glared at Chrono who was trying to free himself from the vines but stopped when he was glared.

"Well," Chrono scratched his cheek, "I remember some parts of my memories when you slammed me at that forest. I dunno if I should thank you or not, even. Though, they're all about Pokemons and nothing about my past," Chrono's frown made the Leafeon think he's telling the truth. "A Leafeon, correct?" He snapped his fingers and smiled.

"Well, yes." Leaf turned to his back, "As of now, I have no proof to execute you. You may roam freely in the forest." he walked away from the two towards the forest and desappeared out of sight.

"It's getting late," Hope's childish voice came back, "I know of a place where you can stay," he looked and smiled at Chrono who smiled back.

"That'd be nice," Chrono replied blankly.

Chrono followed Hope absent-mindedly. After a few minutes, they came across a huge tree. It's trunk and leaves were of emerald color. Light reflected unto it making it glitter like it was real emeralds. The sight was breathtaking as Chrono was left agaped looking at it.

"Wait here," Hope said before he dashed towards a small hole at the bottom of the tree. He came back after a while, holding what seems like a blanket full of his belongings in his mouth.

"A-Are you sure you don't mind? If I'm not mistaken, this is where you're living," Chrono hesitated on accepting Hope's offer now.

"Ih hain, hon hori (It's fine, don't worry)," the Eevee put the blanket down, "I can always go to my brother's house," he assured Chrono but Chrono still felt a bit guilty.

"But," Chrono looked at the hole, "how do I fit in there...?" he nervously asked. Hope looked at the hole, at Chrono, back at the hole, and back at Chrono.

"We still need some time to...," Hope shook his head, "I need you to go a bit far from here," he said at Chrono who was puzzled.

"Why?" Chrono asked.

"It's a secret, c'mon," Hope ushered Chrono a few distance from where they were. After a while, Chrono couldn't see the tree anymore. "Good, now stay here." Hope quickly ran back towards the direction to where the tree was. Chrono wanted to see what they're going to do but he didn't want to upset his friend.

"Friend..." Chrono muttered to himself as he looked up the orange sky. Looks like the sun is setting. About an hour later, the sun has already set and darkness filled the forest. A few moments later, things started glowing on the tree branches, slightly illuminating the forest just enough to be able to see. Chrono was closing his eyes with his back laid down on a tree and his bag beside him before he heard footsteps. He opened his eyes to see that Hope was skipping towards him. He picked up his bag, stood up, and waved it him.

"I'm sorry it took long but it's ready, let's go!" Hope waved his tail to follow and so Chrono did. Once the tree came into view, he saw that the hole nn the tree has gotten bigger, big enough for him to enter, and that vines were hanging on top of it. The vines were long enough to touch the ground and were thick enough to conceal what's inside.

"Woah," Chrono slowly neared the tree before something forcefully took his bag. He struggled to keep it by hugging it to his chest but was of no avail when the green whip took it and he saw the Leafeon and his Vine Whip carrying Chrono's bag.

"Safety purposes," Leaf pushed Chrono inside the hole in which he stumbled down inside.

"O-Oi!" Chrono stood up and and tried to get out but the vines somehow stiffened. The vines, now, were as hard as the tree.

"Just make yourself comfortable, it's not like I'm locking you in there forever. I really would like to but then my little brother wouldn't stop nagging if I do. There's a leaf near there, just press it and it'll illuminate the room. I'm going to inspect your bag and see if it's all clear, see you tomorrow," Leafeon used Quick Attack to not attack but immediately leave the area and back to his home.

"Well, see you tomorrow, Chro-chro," Hope yelled and left.

"H-Hey!? That's it, you're all just going to leave me here?" Chrono puffed his cheeks and just sighed. He looked for the leaf and pressed it, and the room really did illuminate itself. It was actually like a small house compacted in one. On the top-left corner was a wooden bed with leaves, on the top-left corner is a chair and a table with a bowl full of berries. On the lower-right was a wooden sink where a branch constantly drops a a bit of water on a wooden basin, the lower-left was just free space. Chrono was amazed on how something like this is inside a tree.

"So, I guess I'm stuck here. Not like I can go anywhere with this thing blocking the... um..." Chrono stared at the vine-covered hole for a while before saying, "I'll just call it a door. I guess that's the bedroom," he pointed at the area with the bed, "that's the... kitchen, I guess," he pointed at the area with the table and chair, "and that's the... washing area..." he pointed at the wooden sink, "and... where is the comfort room..." he said and then the room began to shake. A door (hole with vines) suddenly appeared at the top-center of the room. Chrono cautiously went and opened the door to see that it was a comfort room.

"Well... I guess that was handy..." he closed the door, "but what is that area..." he eyed the empty area of the room. It was weird how that that wasn't the place for the comfort room but then again, this day has been weird. Chrono yawned and stretched his arms before he decided to go to sleep but first, he grabbed a blue berry and took a bite of it, "Oran Berry," he muttered to himself as he continued eating the whole berry.

He jumped on his bed and laid down on it. It was surpsisingly comfortable, like a thin marshmallow. His mind dozed off on what just happened today, the memories he regained, which only comprised of Pokemon stuff and not past, and the fateful encounter with that Eevee and Leafeon. How will his adventure turn out, he wondered. His eyes were getting heavy and with a smile, he said, "This'll be a fun adventure," and slept.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Leaf's house, which was actually just near to the tree Chrono was sleeping, he was checking on the items inside Chrono's bag. "Everything seems fine, none of these are dangerous..." he opened a Pokeball and looked inside it, "nothing... none of those _things_..." he closed the Pokeball and put it back. He rubbed his eyes with both his paws and yawned, "I guess he's not a threat after all... I guess I should sleep now," he went towards a hole and entered it.

"Hi Brother Leaf!" Hope greeted Leaf loudly but Leaf just stood there with eyes widened.

"What... ARE YOU DOING HERE!?" he yelled at Hope who just rolled around what seems to be the Leafeon's bed.

"Well, since Chrono is using my home, I'm staying here for tonight," Hope replied.

"I thought you were at you were going to stay at one of your friend's house or something!" Leaf seemed pissed.

"I call dibs on this bed, by the way ~" Hope patted the bed he was lying on.

"Don't you ignore me!"

"Zzz... *snore*"

"What the, GET OUT OF MY BED!"

* * *

 _Thanks for reading ~ And sorry for the very late update... if there is anyone reading this._


	3. Chapter 3: What Happened Before

_As an apology of the late update, I decided to update the story earlier. So, without further delays, Chapter 3. Hope you'll like it_

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Everything was cold and dark. He couldn't see anything but he can hear shouts from somewhere. He could also hear cries for help and screams. He was shaking,

he was afraid of something, but he doesn't know what it was he was scared of. He then heard footsteps that sent chills up his spine. What was going on? Why

was he scared and alone? He heard the door slammed open and he whimpered silently. He saw light pass through his eyelids as his fear rose.

Chrono gasped for air. He jumped upright from his bed, breathless. That dream... what was it? Another memory...? "Maybe I should sleep more to regain all my

memory," he laid down again.

"That'll get you nowhere, idiot," he heard a voice. He jumped upright again and saw the Leafeon sitting near the door.

"Oh, h-hello. Leaf, was it?" Chrono asked.

"Well, you seemed so calm. Well, can't blame you since you're still a kid," the Leafeon turned to his back and exited the house.

"E-Eh...?" he blinked a couple of times... on the contrary, he never actually remembered how old he was. He got up from bed and went to the table to get

another berry. It was very sweet which reminded him of the name, "Pecha Berry..." after nomming the rest of the berry, he washed his face at the washing

area and proceeded outside. He was greeted with a shout from his friend.

"GOOD MORNING SLEEPYHEAD!" the Eevee shouted at Chrono which made him wince a bit.

"Geez..." Chrono rubbed his ears, "couldn't you not yell when you greet?" Chrono asked, feeling a bit annoyed, "and it was Hope, was it?"

"Nope, and yep," the Eevee just smiled at him. Chrono couldn't help but just smile back. "Well, let's do something today."

"Hmm? I don't even know you that much, after all, I just met you yesterday and, oh yeah, thanks for letting me sleep here," Chrono thanked Hope who rolled

his eyes.

"Just because we just met doesn't mean we can't be friend, and you're welcome," Hope replied before he turned to his back, "Well, let's go, follow me," Hope

started skipping in the direction that made Chrono felt like he knew where they're going.

"My ears are still ringing a bit..." he muttered to himself as he followed him.

* * *

Once they arrived, Chrono's feeling was right. Hope led the way towards the lake. It was still as beautiful and nostalgic when Chrono first saw it but now,

there are Pokemon swimming and chatting. It looked like fun but Chrono would just make himself feel akward since he's the only human around. He wondered why

there weren't any Pokemon when he first came here. Probably because they were scared of him.

"Oh, Hope, there you are," an Oshawatt approached the Eevee in which they hi-pawed afterwards, "we've been waiting for you," the two of them chatted for a

while before he looked at Chrono "so, this is the human you were talking about?" the Oshawatt him from head to foot then smiled, "Hi, my name's Blue, what's

yours?" he extended his paw.

"My name's Chrono," he shook Blue's paw, "but I thought Hope would've already told you my name,"

"Oh, I asked him, but he said I'd ask you myself," he glanced at the Eevee who tongued in return, "anyways, c'mon, let's get swimming!" he said excitedly.

"Swimming...?" Chrono asked nervously.

"Yeah swimming!" Eevee also excitedly say.

"Swimming...?" Chrono asked nervously again.

"Don't tell me you don't know how to swim?" Blue asked with a tone of shock.

"I-It's not like I don't know," Chrono blushed, "it's just that... maybe I don't remember..." he stared at the lake. He looked back at the two, "So, I'm not

confident if I should join you guys. Have fun anyways," he took a few distance from the lake and sat there. He saw the two look at each other before they

jumped towards the lake. Swimming looked fun, how they splashed water on each other and do tricks with each other. Chrono just smiled and closed his eyes to

feel the wind around him. It was cool and refreshing and nostalgic. Why does he feel nostalgic when he's near the lake, he wondered.

"Take it you're doing fine," Chrono jumped when he heard the familiar voice from before. He looked at his side and there was Leafeon, sitting with his eyes

closed, feeling the wind around him, perhaps.

"Um, I guess so?" he nervously replied, "and you're doing fine...?" he said as he looked at the Leafeon, "Are you feeling the cool air as well? It feels

great, doesn't it," he inhaled the fresh air and exhaled, "Ah, so good..."

"You're welcome," Leaf muttered as he opened his eyes a bit.

Chrono knew Leaf said something but he wasn't able to hear it clearly, "E-Excuse me?"

"Photosynthesis," Leaf said in which Chrono replied with an, "Oh!" He sighed and looked at Chrono, "does that answer your question?" Chrono nodded, "Good,"

The two of them sat there for a while, looking at the Pokemon playing around and having. It wasn't long before Chrono asked, "So, why won't you join them?"

"I need not give you any information regarding of that matter," the Leafeon said coldly.

"O-okay..." the two of them went quiet. After a while, the Leafeon sighed again.

"I'm the protector of this forest. I shouldn't let myself behave like a child and ignore my responsibilities," he said with a tone of sadness. He seems to

be a busy Pokemon.

"I... I see..." he stared at the blue skies, thinking how hard it must be to maintain peace in this forest.

"But then again, all the Pokemon here are nice and friendly. No unwanted fights and other shenanigans going on. It's quite peaceful out here," Leaf said.

Chrono suddenly thought that saying the first part was just redundant. "Also, I left your bag at the corner of your house."

"And you're saying that now!?" Chrono yelled, feeling a bit angry.

"Now now, kids should keep their temper," Leaf replied with a sarcastic tone. Chrono puffed his cheeks and the just laughed with the Leafeon laughing

afterwards as well.

"Why are you being nice to me? After all, yesterday, you tried to kill me," Chrono asked.

"Well, first off, no human should be able to enter here. I believe you've been at the edge of this forest?" Chrono nodded, "Well, there's a mysterious force

that surround this forest. It enhances the power of the gravity so anything that goes into that area immediately gets flattened or, from here, fall into

their impending doom. There's only one way inside this forest but it's well-guarded with a guardian. Any human it sees is a threat and will not hesitate to

kill him," Chrono gulped, thinking how bad it would be if he encountered that guardian.

"Second, you were near my brother, and since I'm his brother, I will not let anything happen to him," he then muttered a few more words that Chrono could

not hear, "Also, if I remember correctly, you have amnesia?" Chrono nodded, "Then I guess you don't know the state of the world we're living in right now,"

his tone suddenly became serious. Chrono was hesitant to ask but he did anyways.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Chrono asked. What is the state of the world he's living right now?

"I'll tell you..." Leaf replied, "It's hell."

Leaf's reply shocked Chrono. What did he mean by hell? In his memories, all of them were on a safe environment... except the most recent one... maybe that

memory... was a day in hell.

"Pokemon and human... they used to live harmoniously. They fight side by side with each other. The pokemon's pain is the owner's pain, and the owner's

success is the pokemon's success. There's a bond between a pokemon and human that just can't be broken. That is, until the war broke." Chrono couldn't

believe it. Why is there a war? What happened between the pokemon and human? The more he knew, the more questions pile up.

"War...?" Chrono thought out loud.

"Yes, war," Leaf said, "Do you know this island?" Chrono shook his head, "Oh course you don't, you have amnesia. Anyways, this island has a mysterious

barrier covering it. Nothing can get in, nor out. Everyone calls this island, Fragma, the Island of Mysteries."

"Back on topic, a human made a speech about the barrier, 'what would happen if we run out of resources? There'll be nowhere else to go because of this

stupid barrier. And there are a lot more regions out there, but why are we cooped up in this island? We humans hold no power but the Pokemon can. We should

kill every single pokemon in this island to attain freedon,' the human said, not word by word, but the thought of it anyways," Leafeon suddenly chuckled,

"and there were actually people who went with him. Those idiotic humans," Chrono saw the Leafeon clench his paw.

"But, there were those who disagreed, right? Didn't they-" Chrono was cut off by Leaf.

"They wouldn't listen. Instead, they started it off with this one town. It was a surprise attack, no one ever expected them coming. The town was filled with

Pokemon because it's the town where all of the townspeople disagreed on killing them. No one was left alive," Leaf went quiet after that. He breathed in

heavily and said, "and the start of the war begun after that." Chrono was dumb-founded. Could his memory be from that town?

"Then, little did we know that the humans actually used Pokemon to attack other Pokemons, and you know what pains me the most? It's that the Pokemon had no

will of their own. They were controlled with a Pokeball to do whatever the owner wants them to do," Chrono was about to say something but Leaf stopped him

and said, "Don't worry, those Pokeballs of yours were harmless," Chrono sighed with relief but then realized something.

"Is there any way to stop them from being controlled?" Chrono asked.

"There is one, to destroy the Pokeball. Luckily, the owner mustn't be far from his own Pokemon or the Pokeball will have no effect," Leaf still looked

distressed, "but they are making stronger, harder Pokeballs. We can't break it as easily as before," Leafeon went quiet again. Chrono felt the atmosphere

tensed up.

"So, what happened to the war?" Chrono nervously asked.

"The war continued on. Up to now, we're still fighting against them. Every now and then, we send Pokemon to go outside of this forest to help with the

resistance. But sadly, they're also getting stronger... and recent intel tells us that we're on our last town to barricade. If this goes on, they might

reach it here and just solve nothing. It's idiotic for them to think that we can hold such power to create such a strong barrier but they continued," Chrono could see a faint smile on the Leafeon's muzzle, "but just recently, their base exploded. We don't know the reason but it's an advantage to us. It'll take some time for them to rebuild it, so we can go all out!" Leafeon slightly yelled, giving him some glances from the other Pokemon.

"W-Well, you look high in spirit," Chrono replied nervously.

"Of course, this is our time to strike back!" Leafeon replied. Chrono just laughed and continued staring at the sky. He then looked at the lake and there was Eevee who jumped out of the water and shaked vigorously to dry himself. He then approached Chrono with a smile.

"I have a surprise for you, follow me!" Chrono followed Eevee where they approached to the edge of the lake.

"So, where's this surpri-" Without warning, Blue and some more water pokemon used Water Gun on Chrono, pushing him towards the water. Chrono saw a grin on Eevee's face before he splashed into the water.

Chrono was in the lake. He had another nostalgic feeling. It wasn't before long when he was running out of breath and immediately swam towards the surface. He emerged from the lake and gasped for air, "How's the swim?" Hope said sarcastically.

"You..." Chrono grabbed Hope's hind leg and pulled him down, "you little," he noogied the Eevee's head and laughed. The other pokemon jumped on the lake and they all had fun playing together. It went on for about an hour. Chrono left the lake and said that he's going to go back for now.

"Okay, see you later!" Hope waved his paws and Chrono waved his hands. Chrono left went his way back.

* * *

Once he arrived, he entered and saw the bag on the corner, just like what Leaf said. He opened it and saw a note inside it.

"If you want some privacy, just touch the vines slightly and say these words, 'I call for thee, the power of Shaymin, Impietri' and if you want to get out, 'I thank thee, the power of Shaymin, Inmuia'" Chrono read the note. He silently thanked the Leafeon and proceeded through the door. He said the words on the note and the vines harden. He guessed that this is what Leaf did when he trapped Chrono inside. Now that he had some privacy, he produced the clothes inside his bag and changed into them.

After changing, he picked up the clothes and thought loudly, "Wonder if there's anywhere I can hang these," and then the room shook again and near the washing area was a branch that extended, making it possible to hang several clothes on it. 'This house is so awesome,' Chrono thought to himself as he hanged his wet clothes. He then proceeded to his bed and laid down.

It was hard to accept what was happening to the island. Chrono couldn't help but think that the dream, or nightmare, he had was about that one town. Though, there were other towns as possibilities. He just felt weirded out. What did happen? Chrono just shook his head and turned to his side. He faced the bag with the note visible but he noticed something strange. It was like he couldn't understand the writings on the note anymore. He got up and approached the note. He could read it just fine. Maybe it was just his imagination. Nonetheless, he took the note with him to bed.

He stared at it, flipping and turning it on different angles, thinking that maybe it was because he was lying down but that wasn't the case. The note was written very differently when he was lying sideways and so he did. He jumped when he realized that it was a bit hard to read. He got up and thought for a moment. What was the reason...? He tried closing his left eye, he could still read it clearly, but when he closed his right eye, he couldn't. It was written in a way that was very hard to understand. It sent chills up his spine when he wondered if there's something wrong with him but he couldn't tell Leaf and Hope. He thought it was best to keep it for himself.

After realizing that his right eye has something to do with this, he put the note down and decided to rest a bit. The learning of the history, the playing with the Pokemon on the lake, the reading of this note, it all made him wonder what happened before he came. He felt sleepy after thinking all of these. His eyelids felt heavy and he dozed off.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the lake, Leaf was just sitting on where he sat, looking at the fun time Hope is having before a Sceptile came near to him. "What is it?" Leaf asked.

"Are you sure about teaching him about how to lock and unlock the tree, Leaf?" the Sceptile asked.

"We'll see... if he can read it," he replied, "A human wouldn't be able to read it. Heck, a human isn't _supposed_ to understand us but he's able to casually talk among us," his voice loudened, causing some Pokemon to glance at him again.

"Whatever you say," the Sceptile proceeded to leave before the Leafeon told him to wait.

"Raze, if you can, keep an eye on him," he requested.

"Understood," and with that, Raze took his leave.

* * *

 _Thank you for reading. I hope you liked it ~_


	4. Chapter 4: The Pokemon's Secret

_Here it is, Chapter 4. Enjoy and hope you're liking it :)_

* * *

Chrono didn't actually sleep but was just thinking deeply. Is there something wrong with him that he could read it? He pondered over that question for some time until a knock on the door was heard.

"Yes? Who is it?" Chrono asked.

"Hey, Chro-chro, it's me!" Hope's voice is heard from the other side.

"Oh, okay," Chrono got up, went to the door and touched it, "I thank thee, the power of Shaymin, Inmuia," and he let the Eevee come inside. "Why didn't you just open it yourself?" Chrono asked.

"Only the one who locked it can open it," Hope said. He then jumped to the table and picked up an Oran Berry.

"Did you come here just for that?" Chrono asked feeling a bit annoyed.

"Maybe," Hope replied with a sarcastic voice, "By the way, I remember you saying you needed to get out of this forest," he said, sounding excited.

"When did you heard that?"

"When you came here?"

"Well, yeah, I want to get out of here. I mean, I have to find my memories. It's not like I don't-"

"Take me with you,"

"What...?"

"I said, take me with you!" Hope yelled excitedly, "I wanna leave this forest and explore the world! Well, the island, anyways,"

"Why would you want to leave this peaceful forest? It's a war out there, right?" Hope went silent.

"I know," Hope's ears dropped, "but..." he muttered words that Chrono wasn't able to catch. Hope then ate the Oran Berry in one gulp which surprised Chrono, "Well, it's decided! I'm coming with you!"

"Nothing's decided yet!"

"OK, follow me!"

"Are you even listening?"

"Do you want to get out or not?"

"Ugh... fine...," Chrono followed Hope through a set of trees before they met an open area. Chrono saw two Pokemon fighting each other which made him think that this was not such a peaceful place after all.

"To leave this forest, you have to be strong," Hope explained, "Gain ranks, become stronger, gain even more ranks and become even stronger. Once you get to the highest rank, you'll face my brother if you really are capable. If you can't, you'll still need training. Simple, right?"

"Erm... isn't there any other way?" Chrono asked nervously.

"You said it yourself, it's a war out there. If you're not prepared, you'll die," Hope said bluntly. Hope was right. If it's a war out there, Chrono needs to be strong or else he'll likely die.

"But, how do I even compete with other Pokemon? Unlike them, I don't have any special... erm... moves," Chrono asked as he saw a Buizel used Water Gun at a Pansear who managed to still dodge the high-speed water.

"Well, that's where I come in," Hope said proudly. Chrono knows that Hope's still young but thinking that they can win against Pokemon stronger than the ones they've seen seemed like a pipe dream.

"So, you're gonna carry me?" Chrono asked anyways, even though he knows they can't do it.

"No, I'll teach you how to beat the crap outta other Pokemon!" Hope whispered at Chrono. Chrono didn't quite understand how he can beat other Pokemon without cheating, "And it doesn't require cheating," Chrono felt something sink down inside him. Was it his hopes of getting out of here or that he knows he's gonna get beat up real good.

Hope took Chrono someplace else. Another open area but with no Pokemon in sight. "OK, first, you gotta learn some moves," Hope ran towards the center with Chrono following him.

"Um, I'm not sure if you don't know but I can't use any moves," Chrono said.

"He's correct, Hope," Leaf's voice is heard from the distance. He jumped off a tree and landed besides Chrono, "humans have no capabilities of using any moves,"

"Even though it kinda hurts, it's true," Chrono crossed his and then looked at the Leafeon, "and how did you know we were here?"

"Coincidence," the Leafeon said.

"What do you think, Hope?" Chrono asked.

"I think he was stalking us," Hope replied.

"Anyways, you can't teach Chrono any moves,"

"You don't have to repeat that," Chrono felt useless. He can't get out of the forest unless he knows how to fight.

"Well, we won't know until we try," Hope sat down and closed his eyes. A second later, Vine Whips were produced from him. Chrono was amazed because he knows that an Eevee is just a Normal-Type Pokemon and can't use any Grass-Type moves. He looked at Leaf to see if he was also amazed but he was just looking at it with lazy eyes. He must've known that Hope was capable of doing such a thing.

"Good luck teaching him, even though it's useless," Leaf turned to his back and left. Chrono also thought that it was useless but like Hope said, they won't know until we try. He approached Hope and asked how he can do it as well.

"First off, the world is full of energy. It contains all the elements corresponding to the different attributes of Pokemon. Fire, Grass, Water, and other types. They all use this energy and convert it into their power. The stronger you are, the more power you can hold. At least, that's what my brother said," he explained. Chrono nodded, he understood what Hope said, "Wow, you got all that? It took me hours to understand that," Hope laughed.

"Well, it's not like you were using any complicated words," Chrono said.

"My brother used complicated words, though," Chrono heard Hope muttered and just chuckled.

"Let's get started shall we, teacher?" Chrono said and Hope nodded.

Chrono was at alone the center of the area, meditating. His humming synchronized with the wind as it danced around him. He could feel some energy around him. He focused on the palms of his hands as he positioned his left on top and his right at the bottom, as if he was holding a ball. He felt like he was suffocating but he continued on. Gusts of wind exploded around Chrono while he was doing this.

"What are you doing?" Hope came back, carrying two Pecha Berries in his mouth. The wind around Chrono died.

"Oh, I was just... doing what you just said?"

"I dunno if gathering energy works that way, though." Hope put the berries down and nommed on one.

"Well, couldn't hurt to try, right?"

"It's 'don't know until we try,'"

"It's the same thought isn't it?" Hope shrugged, "Well, I'm gonna try any-" Chrono was cut off by a blast of dark light eminating from his palms. The light was rather blinding even though it was dark. He looked at his hands and saw that he was holding some dark ball. Hope was astonished when he saw it. "I... I dit it...?" Chrono looked at disbelief before he stood up and started jumping, "I did it! I did it, I dit it, I did it, I did it!" he accidentally threw the ball upwards, creating an explosion, "oops..." he looked at Hope and apologized.

"That was..." Hope smiled, "AMAZING! Now we just need to train up more! Let's meet again here, tomorrow!" he said excitedly.

"Why tomorrow? We can still train now," Chrono said.

"No Pokemon has ever used a Shadow Ball here, and since it exploded upwards, there will be other Pokemon coming here. We need to keep this training a secret," Hope winked at him. He feels like Hope is hiding something but he just nodded and they went back to his home.

Little did they know that Leaf was watching them all along, hiding in plain sight. He was more of shocked than amazed at what he just saw, "This is..." he jumped off from the tree and walked towards the center. Pokemon started coming from the edge of the area. Leaf breathed in and said, "Don't worry, that was just my little brother showing off, there's nothing to be concerned off," and with that, the Pokemon whispered to each other as they dispersed and went back to what they were doing.

"It's not everyday that I hear you lie," a Sceptile approached Leaf who chuckled in response.

"You can see right through me, huh..." a moment of silence came.

"Tell me the truth, what happened?" the Sceptile asked.

"Raze, this truth must not be told. Besides, they're going to enter the competition. You'll know by then," and with that, Leaf left the area with the Sceptile leaving at the opposite side.

"And things just keep getting weirder," a nearby Oshawatt, hiding behind a tree, said to himself, smiling.

Meanwhile, Hope and Chrono just arrived to their destination. They luckily met no Pokemon while they were sneaking towards Chrono's home. The sun hasn't set yet but judging from where it is, it'll be dark soon. They entered the tree and there they thought up their strategy. Once it started to become dark, Hope bid Chrono goodbye and went to his home (or crash at Leaf's home) but before he left, Chrono asked what the name of the tree he's residing in is.

"It's a bit weird that I don't even know the place I'm living, y'know?" Chrono said.

"My brother calls it the Emerald Tree, but I just call it 'Home." It just feels better saying that," Hope replied.

"Well, either way, thank you for lending it to me," and with that, Hope nodded and left. Chrono locked the door and laid down on his bed. He heard his stomach grumble so he stood up, took a berry and nommed it.

It took him a while to react to the spiciness that's burning his tongue. He started rolling on the floor, tears welling up. A few minutes passed and the burning in his mouth cooled down. He stood up and ran towards the sink, drank some water and sighed in relief. The next time he'll see that berry, he'd probably just throw it at his enemies for them to suffer the spiciness like he did. Once that problem was over, he decided to train secretly.

He went to the spacious part of the house and there, he tried doing it again, this time, he was standing instead of meditating. With the left on top and the right at the bottom, he focused. He closed his eyes as energy flowed within him just like before but it felt different. The energy that flowed withim him was much lighter. It didn't suffocate him, instead, it just made him feel lighter than air. But even after doing it for more than before, he couldn't produce the Shadow Ball.

"Why...?" he muttered to himself, "Why can't I do it this time?" He was dedicated to leave the forest but if he can only summon it once, then what's the point of it? It can't be a last resort. Pokemon can use their abilities more than once. He can't rely on a single shot against stronger Pokemon.

And with that, he unlocked the door and went out. He was greeted by the Sceptile that was with Leaf.

"Good evening, human," he greeted.

"Oh, uh... good evening to you, too," Chrono went pass the Sceptile who ordered him to halt.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked.

"Does it matter?" he replied.

"As a matter of fact, it does," the Sceptile said firmly. Chrono was feeling irritated that he couldn't use Shadow Ball again and now he had to deal with him, "You were the one who did it, right?" the Sceptile and Chrono both glared at each other.

"Who are you, exactly?" Chrono asked.

"How rude of me, I am Raze, a Sceptile. Pleasure meeting you," he gestured a bow.

"But it's a pain meeting _you_ ," Chrono also gestured a bow, "Also, my name is Chrono,"

"You still haven't answered my question, though. Leaf had already told me all about you, your name is not needed," he said.

"That's mean, but it's more polite to give the name anyways," Chrono continued to walk when he was suddenly blocked by the Sceptile, "Wow, you move fast,"

"It's needed if you have to scout the forest everyday," the leaves on the Sceptiles arms turned into sharp blades, "So I have to prepare for anything and everything," he aimed the blade at Chrono's neck, "even if I have to kill someone,"

Chrono didn't hesitate. He continued his glare at the Sceptile, knowing he did nothing wrong. "I'll join the competition tomorrow, anyways. You'll know by then, right?" Raze's arms turned back to normal, "So there's no need for you to be hostile against me,"

"I shall believe you, for now," and he let Chrono pass through. Chrono walked until he accidentally tripped on a vine, "And that's why I didn't let you pass," he said.

"Ouch, you could've said so earlier," he rubbed his flattened nose while he heard the chuckling of Raze, "It's not funny!"

"Sure it is," he replied. Chrono stood up and continued to walk carefully now while Raze disappeared when Chrono looked back.

Chrono arrived at the area he was practicing in. The moonlight shone brightly accros the area. He went to the center and inhaled. He started to focus on gathering the energy again. The feeling was like the first time, but with no suffocating energy. With that, he was able to use Shadow Ball. He sighed in relief that he just couldn't use it inside the tree and wondered why. He shrugged and thought that I just couldn't. 'It's not like it was important,' is what he thought.

And with that, he tried making the ball larger, and so he did. It was larger, but he felt weaker, like it was draining all of his energy. He closed his hands and the ball disappeared. He fell on the ground, gasping. It wasn't easy but it was practice. He continued on for about half an hour until he's all worn out. With all his remaining energy, he went back to his house.

As he was walking through the forest, he felt like he was being watched. It wasn't until he was near his house that he heard some rustling. "Who's there?"

"Aw man, and I was hiding so well," a silhouette jumped from the tree and landed face-first, "Ouch..."

"A-Are you okay? Wait, you're... Blue?" he looked at the Oshawatt.

"Yeah, it's me," he stood up, rubbed the back of his neck and stuck out his tongue Chrono.

"So, you were the one following me," he asked.

"I just wanted to see if what he said was real," he replied.

" _He_?"

"Raze. He said that wasn't Hope's doing, the explosion, even though Leaf said so, so I followed you, since you were always with Hope," he dusted off his body.

"Oh, the explosion," Chrono felt akward, "So, you know now. But please don't tell anyone, Hope said he wanted it to be a surprise," he whispered and Blue replied with him zipping his mouth. "Thank you. I'm a bit tired from training so I'm going to sleep now. I'll see you tomorrow," he head inside, waving at Blue who waved back and muffled a few words because he "zipped his mouth."

Chrono locked the door, ate a Pecha Berry, and laid on bed. He closed his eyes and reminisced what he did today. He knows what do to to get out. He needed to know how to fight. He was able to use a Pokemon Move. He needed to train. He needs to get out. But he wanted to stay. He then had a conflict inside himself. Why did he want to stay? Is it because it's more peaceful in the forest? His memory is his top priority, but why was he hesitating? Is this what he really wanted? or what he needed?

His eyelids felt heavy. His thoughts blurring. He was still tired and if he has to fight with himself, he should at least be able to think clearly. He emptied his mind, and with that, he fell asleep.

30 minutes ago, at Leaf's house, Leaf just arrived home from scouting. He went towards the hole to his room and saw Hope there, sleeping on his bed. "Geez, when you crash at someone's place, at least ask," he muttered to himself before he tucked a blanket on Hope.

"You did it... Chrono... You did it... Brother..." Leaf heard Hope talking in his dreams. He couldn't help but smile at how cute his little brother looked but frowned later on.

"I will protect you... I will not let you leave this forest," he muttered to himself, "I promised... and I'll keep it... Mom,"

* * *

 _Thank you for reading and I hope you'll stay tuned for the next Chapter._


	5. Chapter 5: The First Battle

_The first battle scene of this fanfic. Hope you'll like it :)_

* * *

Chrono woke up with no dream. It was the first time that he had no dream while he slept but it didn't bother him much. He got up, tidied himself a bit then his bed, grabbed a few berries (avoiding the Cheri Berry), put it in his bag, swung it to his left shoulder, unlocked the door, decided to grab one more berry to eat while going to the training area, went out, locked the door, and rushed excitedly.

He passed by a few Pokemon enroute. They greeted him and he greeted them back. It felt like he has always been in this forest because of this. It got him more pumped up as he continued on. He met Blue, the Oshawatt, when he was near the the training area.

"Yo, Chrono, good morning" Blue greeted Chrono who was jogging in place.

"Hi, Blue, morning," he greeted back, "Well, I'm gonna go now, time to train up," he fistpumped, getting more pumped up.

"Good luck, then," the Oshawatt passed through Chrono as he heard him whisper, "You're gonna need it," and went off, snickering. Chrono stopped jogging and stared at the skipping Oshawatt, puzzled. He just shrugged, regained his jogging momentum and continued on.

He arrived at the area and searched for that brown Pokemon. Nowhere in sight. He went at the center and waited for the possible "surprise attack," but nothing. For the last five minutes, he stood there, tensed, waiting for whatever will come at him before he decided to just sit down and wait for Hope. He put his back down, took a berry, and took a bite off it.

It took him waiting for about one hour (probably) before he saw an Eevee skipping to his direction. He stood up and waved at the Pokemon, trying to make his face look like he hasn't been waiting for about one hour for him.

"Where have you been?" The two chorused. They both stared at each other before the Eevee puffed his cheeks.

"I've been looking all over for you!" the Eevee yelled.

"Well I've been waiting for you!" Chrono yelled back.

"Why didn't you wait for me to come to your home?"

"You never said that I have to stay put! And what do you mean looking all over for you when you know that we're going to train here?" Hope went silent.

"Well... um... water under the bridge," Hope laughed hesitatingly.

"I think that idiom was used incorrectly," Chrono said.

"I think that it was used correctly," he replied.

"Was it?"

"Maybe...?"

"It was used correctly, idiot," the two heard Leaf's voice from a distance. They saw him on a tree branch with his cold eyes staring at Chrono. He jumped off from it and landed beside Hope.

"Seriously, stop popping up to protect me, Brother Leaf, I'm not a little kid anymore," Hope said.

"Yeah, and don't you have anything else to do besides stalking us?" Chrono added.

Leaf's eyes widened and then slowly narrowed and avoided eye contact, "Yeees... no...," he muttered but was loud enough for the two to hear.

"Then can you help us practice?" the Eevee asked cheerfully at his brother.

"Yeah, it'd be great that the person who tried to kill me back then would practice me to death now," Chrono put his hands on the back of his head and smirked.

"I was just trying to protect him," his voice sounded off, like he was another person, "Ahem, anyways," his calm, cool tone came back, "I'll help you train but on one condition. Hope," he pointed his paw at him, "you will have to go back to Novice."

"Whaaaaat?" Hope frowned, "that's not fair! I got to my rank in three months! I can't do all that again!" he childishly yelled. Chrono's eyes widened when he heard the words "one year." He doesn't want to keep fighting Pokemon for three months. He also can't wait three months to learn more about his memories.

"Oh, don't worry, we're having a special event," Leaf said.

"An event?" Chrono asked.

"Well, originally, you can only have two fights per day and the fight must be within your rank or one rank higher. That's why it took my brother so long to attain his rank, training was also part of it. In this event, you have three fights per day," Leaf got cut off by Chrono.

"Three every day? That's not even much of a differe-"

"Please, let me finish before you proceed to your mindless responses," Chrono felt embarrassed for jumping to conclusion and looked away.

"Sorry," he sheepishly apologized.

"Continuing on, aside from there having three fights," he smirked evilly, "you can fight those who are higher than you, no limit."

Chrono didn't understand how it would be of advantage but when he looked at Hope, eyes wide and mouth agape, it probably would be a very good way to gain ranks. Though, Chrono didn't even know the ranks, so he asked Leaf.

"Finally, you asked a sane question," Leaf said mockingly. Chrono felt a bit annoyed on how Leaf put it. "Well, first, the rules. You can gain a rank by successfully defeating your enemy 'slash' enemies," Chrono cut off Leaf again.

"Who in the world uses 'slash' when they talk?"

"None of your business. If you keep interupting me, I won't help you train," Chrono flinched. "Next time," Leaf glared at Chrono who was avoiding eye contact, "Anyways, enemy 'slash' enemies. You need two battles if you fight on the same rank, but only one battle if you fight one rank higher. Now, about the ranks. There are 20 Ranks total. Right now, you two are at Novice," he sat down, produced a Vine Whip, and started to draw on the ground. Chrono decided to sit down as well.

"Wait, what do you mean 'you two are at Novice?'" Hope asked after Leaf has almost finished drawing.

"Well, you asked for my help, right?" he flicked his Vine Whip before he retracted it, "And I've already agreed, even if you said 'nevermind' or whatsoever."

"That's so mean," Hope laid flat on the ground, ears drooped, feeling depressed, "I was about to train him myself..." he booed childishly.

"Anyways, you start at Novice, you climb up to Amateur, then to a Contender, a Warrior, a Fighter, those are the Tier 1 Ranks. The Tier 2 Ranks are: Knight, Guardian, Protector, Champion, Forest Preserver. Tier 3 Ranks are: Adept, Elite, Master, Lord, Overlord. Tier 4 Ranks are: Legendary, Ultimate, Omega, Tera, and lastly, Beta. Betas are able to fight me and if they succeed, they can leave. If they can't defeat me, they can't leave. Simple as that."

Hope fell asleep half-way of Leaf's explanation while Chrono was listening intently, "So, in this event, we can fight the Beta directly?"

Leaf laughed at Chrono, "You think it's that easy? You saw one fight yesterday, didn't you? Those were just Champions. Imagine fighting those Pokemon 20 times stronger," the Leafeon pointed a Vine Whip at Hope, "my brother is-" he was cut off when Hope shushed him.

"It doesn't matter what rank I was, I'm back to Novice, anyways," Hope said.

"The rules of the competition is also simple, beat your opponent fairly, that's it," Leaf stood up, "And now that I've done teaching you the Rules and Regulations, let's begin, shall we," he started producing Vine Whips one after another, totalling to 20 whips.

"W-Wait, I'm not," he managed to dodge an incoming whip by rolling, "At least let me," he dodged another one by jumping, "get ready!" and he continued to dodge the incoming whips.

"You need to be ready at all times. If you're not, you'll die before you even get a chance to know who killed you," Leaf said as he continued his barrage of whips, "Besides, with this many whips, my power is lessened. You can feel only a slight pain."

Chrono continued to dodge the vine whips. Occasionally, he got hit when he was off-balanced or he was cornered. He saw that Hope was there, laid down. A whip was going towards his direction but he just rolled a bit to dodge it, and he got back to his laid down position. Chrono lost focus seeing this and got hit by another whip.

"Time's up!" Leaf yelled, "Human, you're lousy at dodging. You got hit fourteen times within three minutes. Hope, on the other hand, never got hit even though I tried to hit him 50 times, and yes, I counted," he pointed a whip at the Eevee.

"What? You tried to hit him 50 times? But he hasn't even moved an inch," Chrono exclaimed.

"Fool, Hope did move. He was laying down there," Leaf pointed a whip about 2 feet from Hope.

"Are you sure? Because to me, he didn't move," Chrono asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," and with that, he did another barrage of whips.

"Let me get ready first, dammit!" and with that, Chrono continued his training.

Chrono continued his training of dodging the whips. He was starting to get the hang of it as his number of hits decreased everytime they performed it (except for that one time when he tripped). After thirteen tries, he managed to dodge all the incoming whips.

"That was good, human. Speed and Evasion is everything here. If you can't strike first, you die. If you can't dodge, you die. Just remember to keep calm and you'll probably be fine," Leaf turned to his back and started walking away.

"Wait, that's it? No more training?" Chrono asked.

"Speed and Evasion is all you need. You already have quite a good Endurance and Stamina. Normally, they'd take an hour of break for the next three tries. To be honest, I'm actually impressed, but let's see how you'll go in a real fight," and with that, he jumped from tree to tree and disappeared from sight.

"Also adrenaline. Usually we fight with adrenaline, that's why it makes us stronger. No need for more exercise," Hope added. "Well, now that we're done training, let's go and enter the competition," Hope stood up and started walking, ears still drooped.

"Are you sure you're in the mood to fight?" Chrono asked, "You look depressed."

"I'm not depressed. It's not like it'll make a difference in me going back to Novice anyways," Chrono didn't hear Hope's mutter. He shook his head, "I'm not depressed at all, besides, we're gonna give it our all!" he cheered.

"Right! Well, let's give it our all!" Chrono replied, "We're sticking to that strategy, right?" Hope nodded, "OK," and they left the training area.

* * *

Once at the Arena (Hope called it that, though it's just an open space), they registered for it. The Machop was about to mention what was Hope's rank but he was shushed by Hope. Chrono wanted to know what rank Hope was originally but if Hope doesn't want him to know, he's fine with it. They prepared themselves for the match by doing a bit of stretching.

"So, what rank are we gonna fight?" Chrono asked.

"Tier 3, Adept. You need to know how to fight a bit, first," Hope said calmly in which made Chrono unbalanced and fell.

"T-Tier 3? I thought we're starting at Tier 2 or something. Because, you know, we can challenge anyone after," Chrono said as he pushed himself up.

"Pfft, Tier 2 is child's play. We need a challenge, and that's Tier 3. Just be glad I didn't go with Tier 3, Overlord," Hope stood straight after stretching, "And besides, fighting against Tier 2, we're only limited to this area. With Tier 3, the whole forest is your playground. The strategy only works if we have a wide space to play with."

"Wait, so you're saying that you already planned that we're fighting against Tier 3's?" Chrono asked as he continued stretching

"Yep, pretty much," Hope said as he stepped forward and readied himself. Chrono rolled his eyes and readied himself as well. "This is it. You ready?" he received a nod from Chrono and they entered the arena.

Chrono and Hope stood at the center of the arena and saw two Pokemon heading their way. One was a Fire-Type Pokemon, a Ninetales, female. The other one was a Water-Type Pokemon, a Buizel, male. Chrono was a bit confused on how Fire and Water could synergize with each other but he just let it slide.

"You two look happy with each other," Hope commented the two who suddenly flustered.

"N-No we're not!" The two said in unison.

"They're in love with each other," Hope whispered to Chrono who giggled back.

"Oh, this is the first time I've seen you. My name Bea, nice to meet you," the Ninetales introduced herself.

"New kid? Well, hope you survive our attacks. We may be different but our hearts are the same," the Buizel said proudly, "Name's Jet, the strongest Buizel in the forest," he said proudly.

"You guys are in love with each other," Chrono said mockingly.

"No we aren't!" The two flushed red.

"But the Buizel, Jet was it? said that your hearts are the same. Doesn't that mean-" Chrono was cut off by the constant stammering of the two, saying "No!" Chrono just giggled at the sight of the two. They really are meant for each other, even though they're different types.

"Shall we begin the match?" a Sceptile said. Chrono shot him a confused look before he responded, "I'm a referee. I check the battles if it's been done fairly. Now, are you or are you not ready?"

"We're ready!" the four said (not in unison), as each team faced each other.

"The rules are simple. Fight fair, fight hard. The fight can go on for one hour. Any longer than that is a draw. Not like there was ever a draw. The whole forest is your battleground," Raze explained as he raised his hand, "Ready," and with a drop of his hand yelled, "GO!"

Hope and Chrono nodded and they jumped towards different directions and ran to opposite sides. Bea and Jet also nodded to each other and they chose to chase Chrono.

* * *

Chrono knew the plan. They split into two and go to different ways. If three minutes have passed and no enemy in sight, immediately go to the rendezvous point, which was the lake. If you are caught in a fight before you reached the rendezvous point, fight for three more minutes before making an "accidental" explosion to the sky. The lake has an open view of the sky so the chances of missing the explosion is low. If this has been done correctly, the other one can rush to help his teammate and do a surprise attack on the enemy. This was planned yesterday after Chrono learnt Shadow Ball. They discussed this on a private place, Chrono's home.

Two minutes have passed and Chrono hasn't encountered their opponent yet. Chrono rushed towards the rendezvous point before he noticed that a fog is coming which is unusual because it's in the middle of the day.

"Quite an impressive strategy, but going alone is a risk itself," a familiar female voice was heard.

"Hmph, quite true, Bea. It's quite better to stick together," a familiar male voice was heard.

"You guys really are meant for each other," Chrono said mockingly.

"You... really think so...?" Bea asked in the shadows.

"H-Hey! Don't say it like that! Makes us feel like we're actually lovers," Jet said in the shadows in a flustered tone.

"Well, I don't really mind," Bea said.

"Whatever! Let's just defeat this kid and go to Hope. Not like he can do anything," and a jet of water went past through Chrono, "Tch, can't see anything in this fog," Jet said.

"Well, that's a downside of us creating it, I guess," Bea said nervously.

Weirdly, Chrono can still see, albeit a bit foggy. He saw Jet beside a tree and Bea beside him. Chrono opened his hands and produced a Shadow Ball and threw it at them, creating a small explosion. The two screamed in pain and was knocked back. He saw them stood up.

"H-How can you see us?" Jet asked.

"I dunno, I just can. I guess this is an advantage for me," Chrono smirked and produced another Shadow Ball and aimed it at the two. Another explosion and they were sent flying, "I guess it's game over," he dusted his hands, feeling proud.

"Not... yet...!" he heard someone from a distance. It was Jet's voice. The fog was clearing up. He saw Bea on top of Jet. She shielded him from Chrono's attack and kept him safe but sacrificed herself, "I'll avenge you, Bea... because," he breathed in and yelled, "I LOVE YOU!"

Chrono jumped with the sudden outburst of the Buizel. Before long, he saw him dashing towards him. Chrono was able to dodge a punch from the Buizel but couldn't dodge the Water Gun aimed straight to his stomach. He was pushed back and slammed to a tree due to the force of the water. He fell from the tree and landed on the ground hard and choked a bit. He felt dizzy but he was still able to stand up. He saw an incoming punch from the Buizel and it hit his stomach, making Chrono's vision blur and consciousness fading.

"You shouldn't let your guard down, or this will happen," Jet said as calmly as he could before he did another punch. Chrono was able to stop the punch with his hand and smirked.

"Gotcha," he said gleefully before an explosion happened between the two. The smoke cleared off and Jet was knocked out while Chrono was panting. With the two opponents defeated, he raised his hands and cheered, "I won! Yeah!" he saw the Buizel, struggling to get up, and helped him, "You could've been a bit more gentle. It's not like I killed Bea or anything, I just knocked him out. Those punches hurt," he said.

"Heh, looks like temper got the best of me again. How am I supposed to confess to her now...?" Jet smiled weakly.

"Well, she's over there," he pointed at the Ninetales, standing strong as a tear rolled down its muzzle.

"So you really do love me?" the Ninetales asked.

"You bet I do," the Buizel said weakly and blushed. Chrono carried Jet back to the Arena alongside Bea. Jet thanked Chrono for helping him and asked how he was able to use such a move.

"I dunno, I just know. Is it weird?" Chrono asked.

"It's awesome, man," Jet said, "And hey, thanks for helping me... us, out. It means a lot," Jet blushed and scratched his cheeks before he was kissed by the Ninetales, making his jaw drop a bit and flushed red. Chrono watched the two as the Buizel hooked its paw around the Ninetales as they walk, probably, to their home.

"Such a cliché love story, right?" Hope suddenly appeared besides Chrono, making him jump. Chrono was about to say something before Hope cut him off, "I had faith in you," and Chrono just smiled.

"Where have you been, anyways?" Chrono asked as he crossed his arms.

"Somewhere out there," he replied. "Congratz on beating them both, by the way," he added.

"Hehe, it was no biggie," Chrono said as he scratched his head.

"Well, I hope it's no biggie because we're gonna have another fight soon," Hope said gleefully.

"What?"

"Aw c'mon, you said it was no biggie, right?"

"Sure, but can't we take a break?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No means no."

"C'mooon."

"Alright, fine."

"Yes!"

"A five-minute break."

"Wha- no! One hour!"

"Pfft, fine."

"Yes!" Chrono raised his arms and fell to the ground. He dozed off a while later.

* * *

 _Backtracked to Hope's PoV after they've split up._

Hope went from tree to tree looking for someone. He stopped and spotted a Leafeon, his brother, Leaf, was walking by. He dropped from the tree and landed face to face with Leaf.

"What is it?" Leaf asked.

"I just want to say thank you," Hope said.

"For what?"

"For _training_ Chrono."

A minute of silence came.

"Hah, honestly, I'm amazed that he didn't show any sign of fatigue after every try. I'm sure I hit his nerves to increase his Endurance and Stamina but it should come with sharp pain. One time I trained someone like that, I had to wait a couple of minutes before another try," Leaf said as his eyebrows crossed, "Be careful, Hope. He is dangerous."

"He's my friend. He wouldn't do anything to hurt me. You should know that, right?"

"He's not my friend anymore," Leaf muttered. "Shouldn't you get going? He might be fighting alone," he said.

"I have faith in him. He will win this," and with that, Hope left. Leaf looked at Hope with worry.

"Don't trust your friends too much," he muttered to himself before he continued his walk.

* * *

 _Thanks for reading, hope you liked it :)_


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